Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.09 EPS

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.09, RTT News reports. The company had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 16.84%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.53 EPS.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $202.41 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $99.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a fifty-two week low of $171.47 and a fifty-two week high of $209.20. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $202.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $196.82.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 4th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MMC. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $215.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $204.87.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total transaction of $305,582.76. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,374.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 9,994 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total transaction of $2,048,770.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,291,675. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total transaction of $305,582.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $611,374.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,751 shares of company stock valued at $7,448,163. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Marsh & McLennan Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Markel Corp grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Markel Corp now owns 618,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $105,456,000 after purchasing an additional 9,300 shares during the last quarter. United Bank lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 7,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 37,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,395,000 after acquiring an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 43.9% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $714,000 after acquiring an additional 1,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.5% during the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 3,066 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $523,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.